Maths at Firs

Mathematics is important for understanding the world and solving problems in daily life and work.  A high-quality mathematics education provides a foundation for understanding the world, and an appreciation of the beauty and power of mathematics.

 

National Curriculum	EYFS Curriculum Map	KS1 and KS2 Curriculum Map

 

Live:  A mathematician who acknowledges how maths is essential to everyday life, critical to science, technology and engineering, and necessary for financial literacy in most forms of employment.

Love:  Children will develop a passion for learning maths that will continue to be applied beyond Firs Primary.

Learn: Children will become mathematicians who have developed fluency, who are genuine problem solvers and have the ability to reason mathematically.

Aims of the Maths curriculum:

In Maths at Firs Primary, we aim to:

• Foster positive attitudes, fascination, and excitement of discovery through the teaching and learning of mathematical concepts.
• Develop a ‘can do’ attitude for our children and perceive themselves as mathematicians.
• Broaden children’s knowledge and understanding of how mathematics is used in the wider world.
• Enable children to use and understand mathematical language and recognise its importance as a language for communication and thinking.  

Progression in the Maths curriculum:

Our curriculum, allows children to explore different mathematical problems and relate them to everyday life. Our policies, resources and schemes support our vision, ensuring all children tackle maths in a concrete, pictorial and abstract way.  The mapping of mathematics across school shows clear progression between year groups, in line with the age related expectations and National Curriculum. Using White Rose scheme as a way of structure for teachers. This is supplemented by Times Table Rockstars.

Foundation Stage

The programme of study for the Foundation stage is set out in the EYFS Framework. Mathematics involves providing children with opportunities to develop and improve their skills in counting, understanding and using numbers, calculating simple addition and subtraction problems; and to describe shape, spaces and measures.

Key Stage 1

The principal focus of mathematics teaching in Key Stage 1 is to ensure that pupils develop confidence and mental fluency with whole numbers, counting and place value. This should involve working with numerals, words and the four operations, including with practical resources (e.g. concrete objects and measuring tools).

 

At this stage, pupils should develop their ability to recognise, describe, draw, compare and sort different shapes and use the related vocabulary. Teaching should also involve using a range of measures to describe and compare different quantities such as length, mass, capacity/volume, time and money.

By the end of Year 2, pupils should know the number bonds to 20 and be precise in using and understanding place value. An emphasis on practice at this early stage will aid fluency.

Pupils should read and spell mathematical vocabulary, at a level consistent with their increasing word reading and spelling knowledge at Key Stage 1.

Lower Key Stage 2

The principal focus of mathematics teaching in lower Key Stage 2 is to ensure that pupils become increasingly fluent with whole numbers and the four operations, including number facts and the concept of place value. This should ensure that pupils develop efficient written and mental methods and perform calculations accurately with increasingly large whole numbers. At this stage, pupils should develop their ability to solve a range of problems, including with simple fractions and decimal place value. Teaching should also ensure that pupils draw with increasing accuracy and develop mathematical reasoning so they can analyse shapes and their properties, and confidently describe the relationships between them. It should ensure that they can use measuring instruments with accuracy and make connections between measure and number. By the end of Year 4, pupils should have memorised their multiplication tables up to and including the 12 multiplication table and show precision and fluency in their work. Pupils should read and spell mathematical vocabulary correctly and confidently, using their growing word reading knowledge and their knowledge of spelling.

Upper Key Stage 2

The principal focus of mathematics teaching in upper Key Stage 2 is to ensure that pupils extend their understanding of the number system and place value to include larger integers. This should develop the connections that pupils make between multiplication and division with fractions, decimals, percentages and ratio. At this stage, pupils should develop their ability to solve a wider range of problems, including increasingly complex properties of numbers and arithmetic, and problems demanding efficient written and mental methods of calculation. With this foundation in arithmetic, pupils are introduced to the language of algebra as a means for solving a variety of problems. Teaching in geometry and measures should consolidate and extend knowledge developed in number. Teaching should also ensure that pupils classify shapes with increasingly complex geometric properties and that they learn the vocabulary they need to describe them. By the end of Year 6, pupils should be fluent in written methods for all four operations, including long multiplication and division, and in working with fractions, decimals and percentages. Pupils should read, spell and pronounce mathematical vocabulary correctly.

Years 2 and 6 complete the national tests (SATs) in May.  

Explicit knowledge in the Maths curriculum:

We have high expectations that all children will succeed and become numerate through our excellent provision of mathematics.  We ensure all parts of the National Curriculum Programme of Study are taught. Ongoing plans particularly focus on the following areas, as identified within the National Curriculum:

1. Number (place value)

2. Number (addition and subtraction)

3. Number (multiplication and division)

4. Number (fractions)

5. Measurement

6. Geometry (properties of shapes)

7. Geometry (position and direction)

8. Statistics

Pupils are given plenty of opportunities within a range of lessons to use and apply the mathematical skills and concepts they have learned. We stress the importance of providing children with an increasingly deeper understanding of mathematical content and method.

Curriculum organisation of the Maths curriculum:

Weekly planning is produced following the KPIs within the National Curriculum.  Within the medium-term plans, suggested teaching hours are identified (many equate to roughly two weeks).  Lesson objectives are then taken from the medium-term plans, many of which will cover two to three lessons, dependent on the children’s understanding.  

Reading, writing and talking in the Maths curriculum:

Throughout the whole curriculum opportunities exist to extend and promote mathematics through development of skills. Teachers seek to take advantage of all opportunities, especially those involving Reading, Writing and Talking.

Skills development:

Pupils are taught to develop:

Communication skills:

• By discussing the content, processes and findings of their work in maths.

Reasoning Skills, including:

• Thinking logically
• Being systematic in approach
• Drawing inferences and conclusions
• Justifying methods, reasons, strategies, results.

 

Problem Solving Skills, including:

• Identification of the problem
• Analyse what needs to be done
• Use of previous knowledge and experience
• Simplification of problem
• How to plan strategies
• Checking solution for sense.

Investigation Skills, including:

• Making and testing hypotheses
• Sorting relevant information
• Collecting, organising and recording information
• Ordering
• Counting possibilities
• Recognising patterns and relationships
• Expressing results

Algorithmic Skills, including:

• Describing a familiar procedure
• Finding ways to recording procedures/instructions
• Detecting and analysing errors
• Explaining how or why a procedure works
• Comparing and evaluating different procedures

Delivery of the Maths curriculum:

At Firs our vision for Teaching and Learning is rooted in high expectations and an unconditional belief that every child can achieve and succeed according to their unique abilities. We believe in challenge, engagement and deep learning (mastery). This is promoted through careful curriculum planning, modelled examples of practice and the use of responsive teaching through planned and purposeful checking for understanding. A positive and stimulating learning environment ensure behaviour for learning is central to our vision, as we strive for a warm and productive classroom climate. We carefully plan assessment to ensure we develop retrieval and schema to build on learning and make connections between subjects.  Finally, we explicitly plan for the delivery of Reading, Talking and Vocabulary in all subjects and this underpins our approach to teaching and learning at Firs.

Firs Foundation of Effective Practice ensures we have a whole school approach to delivering our curriculum vision.  The six Foundations provide staff with a learning model to ensure we deliver lessons based on research evidence, the six Foundations we model our Teaching and Learning on:

Foundation 1: Culture and Climate.

Foundation 2: Checking For Understanding.

Foundation 3: Explaining and Modelling.

Foundation 4: Reading, Talking and Vocabulary.

Foundation 5: Curriculum Planning.

Foundation 6: Retrieval and Schema building. 

 

In summary the impact of a powerful knowledge Maths curriculum at Firs will have the following features:

• Subject driven.
• Knowledge-rich.
• Systematic.
• Progressive.

We aim to sustain and develop in all children:

• confidence, understanding and enjoyment in mathematics;
• awareness of relationship and pattern, and how these can bring about a clearer understanding of a situation;
• an appreciation of mathematics as a means of communication through which they can analyse information and ideas;
• the ability to work systematically where the task requires a careful accurate approach, as well as the ability to show imagination, initiative and flexibility when appropriate;
• independence of thought and action as well as the ability to cooperate within a group;
• problem solving skills and strategies;
• the ability to use mathematics effectively as a tool in a wide variety of situations;
• sensible use of factual recall, mental and written methods, calculators, micro-technology and other mathematical aids
• Ensure children are Ready For Learning and Ready For Life.